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Even with Giannis returning and the Boston Celtics being without Jaylen Brown, the Milwaukee Bucks dropped their third straight game, losing in ugly fashion, 108-81. It’s the second straight game that the Celtics have held the Bucks to 81 or fewer points, after Milwaukee scored 79 on February 1 in Boston. Read our full summary of the game here and catch a six-minute audio recap on the Bucks+ podcast, Bucks In Six Minutes, below.
Player Grades
Giannis Antetokounmpo
25 minutes, 19 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 turnovers, 1 block, 7/18 FG, 2/5 FT, -8
Despite some rust, there were some vintage Giannis moments, displaying his usual aggressiveness in the paint. Maybe just leave the mid-range jumpers off the shot diet moving forward.
Grade: B-
Kevin Porter Jr.
31 minutes, 8 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals, 3 turnovers, 3/6 FG, -8
The Celtics did a great job of forcing KPJ into contested looks. After starting the game 3/4 from the field, with a layup and dunk in there, Boston made him take just two shots for the rest of the game.
Grade: C-
AJ Green
18 minutes, 0 points, 4 rebounds, 0/3 3P, -4
The seven games since the All-Star break haven’t been very good for Green. He’s averaging a paltry 6.6 PPG (well below his season average of 10.3) and is shooting 31.8% from three-point territory. Tonight was another example of the opposition going out of its way to prevent Green from shooting, with Sam Hauser even swatting one away.
Grade: F
Ousmane Dieng
30 minutes, 13 points, 2 assists, 1 rebound, 5/10 FG, 3/7 3P, -8
Dieng’s second start in a Bucks uniform was a bit of a shock, but there were things to like. He displayed an ability to play off of Giannis and convert from deep, while also not letting up on defence; that’s the 3-and-D archetype he has to fit into moving forward. That said, Dieng had a few ill-timed shots and didn’t break the paint all that often.
Grade: B-
Myles Turner
18 minutes, 5 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1/6 3P, -6
It was another rough outing for Turner. He couldn’t buy a three in the first quarter, and just looked overmatched when the Celtics went small. Many of the Bucks’ best runs came when he was off.
Grade: D-
Ryan Rollins
24 minutes, 5 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 2/11 FG, 1/5 3P, -23
There might have been a reason why Doc chose Rollins as the one who got benched in favor of Dieng. He looked dreadful on both ends, and Doc was visibly upset with some of the shots he was taking. After averaging 20+ PPG in February, he’s off to a bad start in March.
Grade: F
Bobby Portis
23 minutes, 12 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 4/7 FG, 3/4 3P, -21
Bobby’s defensive issues reared their ugly head, and he couldn’t out-rebound some of the smaller Boston players. Portis continued to space the floor, but man, the other side of the ball was a train wreck.
Grade: C-
Cam Thomas
11 minutes, 2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 0/3 FG, 2/2 FT, -18
The Bucks opted not to convert Pete Nance for this? Doc admitted that if Thomas is not scoring, he’s not really going to be out there—last night was proof of that.
Grade: F
Jericho Sims
22 minutes, 3 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1/1 FG, 1/2 FT, -13
The only Buck besides Giannis who seemed to have a pulse on the glass. Sims looked solid on both ends of the floor and has really played well these last few weeks after a poor stretch before that.
Grade: C+
Pete Nance
15 minutes, 6 points, 3 rebounds, 2/2 3P, -4
Welcome back to the rotation, Pete! He was a good floor spacer and showed why he should be in the mix moving forward. The Bucks need all the shooting and length they can get.
Grade: B
Gary Harris
13 minutes, 6 points, 1 rebound, 2/4 3P, -15
With Kyle Kuzma inexplicably out of the rotation, Doc opened the door to Harris. That door should be shut moving forward. Before garbage time, Harris played 7:52 and was a -18. Need I say more?
Grade: F
Doc Rivers
Doc had a rough night. I thought the idea to start Dieng was solid, but the rest of the rotations just made no sense (Kuzma’s DNP-CD being the best example of that). Doc also brought up the offense getting stagnant again. Listen, I know it’s up to the players to execute the plays, but the coach is responsible for creating them. Van talked about Doc’s glaring flaws in his article, and everything he wrote rang true last night.
Grade: D
Garbage Time: Andre Jackson Jr., Gary Trent Jr., Thanasis Antetokounmpo
DNP-CD: Kyle Kuzma
Inactive: Alex Antetokounmpo, Taurean Prince, Cormac Ryan
Bonus Bucks Bits
- After his first game back, Giannis talked at length about how this rehab stint was different for him and how he had to approach mentally as well as physically. He also said he doesn’t feel like he’s playing at a deficit anymore:
“I have a lot of smart people around me who tell me the truth, tell me what to do. At the end of the day, I’ve been in this position in life by fighting through things, and I just listen to my gut, and I fight through adversity. Sometimes that’s smart, sometimes that’s not smart. Things I was able to do in the past, maybe I can’t do no more. I just got to be smarter, I’m not old, I’m older for sure. I’m not 24 years old no more. I’ve been dealing with a lot of soft tissue injuries, and if you’re not able to take care of them, they can linger, and I think that’s what happened this year. I feel like I’ve been playing the whole year at a deficit, but now this is the first time where I have a little bit in my tank, that I’m not risking anything, so I’m happy that I’m here.”
- Doc had mentioned pre-game that now that Giannis is back, they have to figure out what pieces to put out there when he’s not on the floor. It’s safe to say that wasn’t achieved; after Giannis subbed out with 6:13 left in the first quarter, the Bucks went from down two to down 17 by the time he checked back in. They did get better in the non-Giannis stretches throughout the rest of the game, but were starting so far behind the eight ball that it didn’t even matter.
- Once again, the Bucks lost the numbers battle. They were outshot by 21 (95-74), lost the turnover battle (16-10), and were out-rebounded 63-47. On the offensive glass alone, it was a 19-9 Celtics advantage.
- Bobby Portis was asked about why the Bucks have turned so sharply from a team that won eight out of 10 to a team that’s lost the last three games by a combined 79 points:
“We’re just playing better teams, kind of fool’s gold, for real. We won eight out of 10, playing against teams that are trying to lose. (Now we’re) playing for teams that are jockeying for position (in the playoffs). We used to be in that position too, jockeying for position, you got games on your schedule you can’t lose. Guys are circling us as the can’t lose team, so they’re coming in trying to win that game. Credit the other team for locking in and getting a dub.”
- Doc said the decision not to play Kuzma was a coach’s decision. Per Keith Smith, this is the first DNP-CD of Kuzma’s nine-year career.
Up Next
The Bucks will get their first look at Jonathan Kuminga in his new threads, as the Atlanta Hawks make their way to Fiserv Forum on Wednesday night for an 8:30 p.m. Central tip-off. Catch the game on ESPN and FanDuel Sports Network Wisconsin.